‘We must be their voice’: The campaign to expose Hamas sexual violence as weapon of war - comment - Greer Fay Cashman

 

by Greer Fay Cashman

The Dinah Project is committed to ensuring the world never forgets the heinous sexual violence and gender atrocities on October 7, 2023, and the ongoing hostage abuse of hostages.

 

Almost immediately following the inhuman attacks by Hamas on southern communities on October 7, 2023, it was known that the nightmarish atrocities perpetrated by Hamas included the worst kinds of sexual violence.

Relatives and friends of the victims were quick to relate what they saw and heard, photographs were published, and survivors – who later included released hostages – told their own painful stories.

Within a day of the horrific catastrophe, President Isaac Herzog and his wife Michal were visiting injured survivors in hospitals, talking to witnesses and the families of people murdered or abducted.

Since then, hardly a day goes by in which Michal Herzog, on her own or together with her husband, fails to meet someone who was released, whose son or daughter was murdered or kidnapped, with children waiting for the return of their father, or anyone with a personal first-hand connection with the onslaught and its aftermath.

A criminal lawyer by profession, Michal Herzog, in November 2023, published an op-ed piece in Newsweek magazine in which she wrote, “The silence from international bodies over Hamas mass gang rapes is a betrayal of all women.”

Michal Herzog speaks during a ceremony for the upcoming Jewish holiday of Rosh haShana (Jewish New Year) at the president's house with representatives of the diplomatic delegations to Israel in Jerusalem. September 20, 2022. (credit: Arie Leib Abrams/Flash90)

Since then, there have been a lot of positive developments, including a heart-breaking interview in The New York Times with released hostage Amit Soussana, the arrival in Israel of a United Nations fact-finding mission, documentary films and photo exhibitions featuring released hostages, large scale rallies in which released hostages spoke of their experiences, and relatives of hostages still captive in Gaza calling for the instant return of all hostages – living and dead. There have also been meetings with diplomats, heads of state, and more.

Establishment of the Dinah Project

BUT ONE of the most important developments was the establishment of the Dinah Project, inspired by the Biblical story of Dinah, the daughter of Jacob, third of the biblical patriarchs, who was raped and kidnapped by Shechem, a Hivite prince. Dinah was eventually rescued by her brothers, but remained silent about her ordeal.

The Dinah Project is composed of legal and feminist experts who are determined that the world will never forget the heinous sexual violence and gender atrocities perpetrated on October 7, 2023, and the ongoing abuse of the hostages. They are dedicated to bringing justice to those victims and to all future victims of conflict-related sexual violence.

Breaking the silence was one of the major challenges confronting the Dinah board and its members, because women in Israel and in other areas of conflict are understandably reluctant to talk about what they were forced to endure.

The interview with Soussana caused an international sensation. Stories about sex always do, but this one at least persuaded other women to be more forthcoming about what had happened to them during the massacre, the frightening ride to Gaza, and the bestial behavior to which they had been subjected.

But their testimonies alone were insufficient from a legal standpoint. The raison d’etre behind the Dinah Project is a quest for justice. As yet, there are no proper legal tools to support such an ambition.

However, the founders and members of the project persevered. Corroboration by witnesses, first responders, healthcare workers, and others was essential for the preparation of a proper legal framework.

In the final analysis, there were literally thousands of pages of testimony, from which the most relevant material was culled to produce an illustrated 83-page pocket-sized book co-authored by Prof. Ruth Halperin-Kaddari of Bar Ilan University,retired judge Nava Ben-Or and former chief military prosecutor Sharon Zagagi-Pinhas.

The book, titled A Quest for Justice, is written in the form of a report. The English translation was presented to Herzog on Tuesday.

Report carries a universal message

HERZOG EMPHASIZED that the report carries a universal message about the criminality of sex being used as a weapon in areas of conflict.

She reiterated her frequent call for the immediate release of the hostages, stating that the number of live hostages has continued to decrease.

Recalling her shock at the silence on the part of international women’s organizations in the early months after the massacre when there were photos and videos released by Hamas, or filmed by Israelis in real time, Herzog charged the organizations with being devoid of humanity.

In referencing the victims, Herzog said that she was sad over their fate. “We have to be the screaming voice for those who can no longer speak,” she said.

In acknowledging all those connected with the project, she said that it had been a very important mission. Discussing the challenges of putting the report together, its three co-authors said that it had been essential to be aware of people’s sensitivities and to walk a very fine line when asking questions.

Ilana Gritzewsky, who was kidnapped together with her boyfriend Matan Zangauker, who is still being held by Hamas, said that she feared for his safety. “I know what they’re doing to him, because they did it to me,” she said, as she described some of the sadistic measures that she had been subjected to by her captors.

Gritzewsky, who was released in November 2023, said that she was appreciative that the suffering of prisoners at the hands of Hamas was now more widely known. There was hardly a dry eye in the room when she finished speaking.

Herzog rose spontaneously and crossed the room to embrace her. Other women followed suit. 

Greer Fay Cashman

Source: https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-860401

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